What Matters
by Hellmouth23
Summary: With age comes responsibility, something a certain Charlie Pace has never been overly acquainted with. That's until a certain someone showed him the bigger picture through her very own life. My very first Charlie/ Claire fic. Rated T. Slight JATE as well.
1. Chapter 1

**What Matters**

**Hey guys I'm back with another fic and this time it circles around a certain ship that i think really should have gotten more play than it did on the show. Anyhoo without further interruption here it is guys and I hope you'll like it ;)**

**Summary : With age comes responsibility, something a certain Charlie Pace has never been overly acquainted with, mainly for being in one of the most famous bands to ever grace the earth and also of not having to deal with the problems every other person would face. However that all changes one day when he is faced with something that could change his life completely.**

**Disclaimer : I do not own lost or any of it's characters apart from the ones I'm bound to make up along the way ;)**

Enjoy

The air was filled tonight with the shouts and cheers for one band. A band consisting of two brothers who originally started in this business by writing songs while playing on their family piano, and now fifteen years later, here they were. Winning for every category they were entered for and becoming every girl's fantasy and every guy's dream of becoming one day, although one Charlie Pace was often approached by quite a number of male fans who were really looking and hoping for more than just an autograph. However much to his relief security usually took care of it, leaving him to finally get the feeling of life back within him again after a hard day at the office, or stage in his case.

This was usually the thing he regretted most about being a celebrity, and not just any celebrity but one who played for one of the biggest bands to ever hit the music biz, Driveshaft.

"You okay baby brother" an equally tired Liam asked the small man who was sitting in his chair in their dressing room, staring into the mirror in front of him and thinking about life, his to be exact.

"Charlie" Liam stressed again with genuine curiosity over his little brother who he loved and cared for most of the time, but sometimes the constant moping around would really get on his nerves. This was supposed to be a ride for them, a journey, not a job to pay the bills as Charlie had argued with him over a countless number of times.

"What?" Charlie asked as he caught his brother just staring at his brother's reflection in the mirror.

"You gotta start living baby brother" Liam confessed while offering him a teasing smile and a nudge against the shoulder and with that the guy was off with his latest conquest standing just outside their dressing room, a random fan he had invited backstage with him. Although Charlie couldn't help but wonder what more went on in these frequent outings his brother would initiate virtually everyday.

The one time he had asked him about it, he had just passed it off as a friendly gathering but judging by his dishevelled and strangely deluded like appearance whenever he would return, he knew that it was something more. _I need a bloody drink, _he suddenly concluded to himself and with that he quickly changed and drove to the nearest Bar to act on his sudden urge and to also hopefully soothe himself into a relaxed state, to wash away the tiredness and stress.

Fifteen minutes later and he was at their local Bar which he always used to go to mainly because it's Tavern like structure reminded him of home, a place he hadn't been to in so long due to the constant tours the band had been on lately. However being in here and being with all the people he had become familiar with over his frequent visits, this was the closest he could ever have to being home. So with that he sat at the his usual place in the Bar, waiting patiently to be tended to.

"So what's it gonna be?" a soft petite voice spoke out in a tired like manner to the thinking man sitting at the table.

"Huh, oh just a pint of Carlsberg love" Charlie simply answered back while burying his face in his hands, personally thanking the Gods that the waitress he got this time wasn't another raving fan who just wanted to ask him either about his upcoming album or whether he was single, which he was in effect, but he felt that he really wasn't at that stage of commitment, not yet.

Three minutes later and the waitress returned with his order and this time he made the gesture to take a brief look at the woman now standing opposite him setting his drink down on one of their beer mats, completely oblivious to his focused gaze on her. It wasn't because she didn't want to, but it was because she was so stressed out, emotionally and physically, that she didn't even have or took the time to acknowledge him in the way he was suddenly hoping she would, and much to his bad luck she just continued on with doing her job, by briefly wiping his table and then walking off to deal with the next table.

She had just found out she was pregnant by a man she thought would be there for her through thick and thin, but who was she kidding. The minute she said the word baby and he was off like a shot, leaving her with not only an unborn baby to nurture and care for, but certain bills that needed to be paid as well, and the fact that she was only 21 made it worse for her, particularly from a family point of view, her Mother to be exact, whom she knew would disown her right away upon knowing about her sudden and unexpected pregnancy.

So she basically had no option but to fend for herself and for the innocent soul growing inside of her now. It was really the only thing keeping her alive right now because the thought of falling in love again was a thing of the past for her, _that only happened in fairytales, _she ridiculously reminded herself.

**So there it is so far guys?? Would you like to see more?? **


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Hey guys. Back again and finally with an update to this fic. So sorry I didn't update it sooner but I was still suffering from the aftermath of Charlie's unfortunate fate on the show, it still hasn't sunk in yet. Anyhoo here's the next instalment and I hope you guys will like it. Thanks for the reviews guys :)**

**P.S. Please forgive me for my poor use of medical terms/language within this chapter. Although the one thing I do know is the procedure of treating a hellish cold seeing as I'm suffering with one at the moment.**

Enjoy

"So what's on the agenda tonight?" at rather wary Claire suddenly found herself being asked by the spunky brunette behind the counter.

"Uh…..not much." she briefly replied and then resumed with her duties as a waitress. A sigh of fatigue escaping her lips once she started to wipe the nearest table towards her. She still couldn't believe that this was her life and probably what it would be from now on, because what she wanted to truly achieve in life didn't matter anymore. Not since she wound up pregnant with the baby of a man she wished she had never met or trusted.

_No one will ever be good enough for my pumpkin_ , her father's words echoed through her head once again. The clear memory of that moment willing a smile to finally grace her fair features. He always knew what to say and it was one of things she loved the most about him.

She was devastated to say the least when she learnt and reluctantly accepted his unexpected demise. Although a part of her was glad that he wasn't here to see her like this for she knew without a doubt that he would feel nothing but shame for what she had so carelessly done, more so whom she had decided to involve herself with despite her family's wishes.

_What were we thinking, what was I thinking? _Were the last words Thomas had said to her right before he bolted out the door without a thought, leaving behind an incredibly frustrated and pregnant Claire. Her tears then falling of their own free will as her body collapsed in defeat of the reality she would have to face from now on.

Ahhhhhhh." she suddenly screamed as her body twisted in reaction to the pain she now felt stabbing her her heart, and lucky for her the previously working brunette behind her immediately reacted to the scene.

"CLAIRE!!" the brunette shouted as she ran to grab the collapsing woman into her arms.

"Can't….sleep….my baby." Claire kept on muttering in a half lucid state while the woman behind her retrieved hold of the nearest phone to call for help, and once that was thankfully achieved, the blonde then found herself being lifted and seated in a chair.

"Claire. Claire, sweetie look at me." the person before her kept on pleading in an attempt to stop them from slipping, and the green eyed brunette sighed in relief when the blonde seemed to be holding on for the time being.

Ten minutes later and the paramedics had arrived. A sight both women were equally relieved, Claire more so than the brunette cause the only thing she was worried about now was the status of her pregnancy.

"Miss, how many fingers am I holding up." one of the two EMT's asked of the rather distracted blonde whose gaze was currently focused on the area of her firm tummy. Her heart suddenly hoping and longing for there to be something alive beneath the surface.

"My baby." she found herself mouthing as her hand lightly stroked the designated expanse. The confession and action certainly alarming the EMT across from her, but he decided to remain silent on his worries for the time being cause worrying her any further would only worsen matters for her. The only thing he felt would help was to get a more professional opinion.

"Miss……"

"Littleton." Claire filled the EMT in when she sensed his hesitation to acquire a suitable referral for her.

"Miss Littleton, do you suffer with any heart related diseases?"

"No….I don't think so." she replied and then furrowed her eyebrows in confusion of this question's relevance to her condition, but never the less she kept an open ear to what was being said cause she knew that any of it would speak for the welfare of her unborn baby.

"Okay, well what I think you just experienced was a mild case of hyperventilation." the man explained in a clear and precise manner. The effects of his words forcing the blonde to let out a lingering sigh of relief, but his next question was enough to physically weaken her physically once again.

"Have you felt pressured with anything lately?" she then found herself being asked and in response she just bowed her head as low as it would go and gazed once again at the one thing that worried her the most. Not because of what it was, but more so of what it would mean for her.

"Miss?"

"Uh…..no. No, I…everything's okay." she decided to answer instead while offering her best attempt at a reassuring smile but there was one person in the room who could see right through it and with that they felt the need to express their disbelief in a subtle but effective way.

"Is there anything we can do?" the brunette took it upon herself to ask the paramedic hunched before a gob smacked Claire.

"Uh, well all Miss Littleton can do is try to take it easy for the next few days." the EMT instructed in a clinical tone while taking note of Claire's progressing dull expression.

How was she supposed to relax and pretend that everything was okay when it clearly wasn't. The reality of her situation reminding her of that, but still she tried to dismiss it for now when she suddenly felt all eyes on her.

"Well that won't be a problem cause I'm perfectly…….." she offered as she tried raising herself into a standing position but she found that a considerably hard task to achieve when she completely lost all feeling within her legs. The outcome of this drastic change forcing her to collapse into the nearest form of support and, with that she was rushed off to the hospital immediately. Her complete loss of consciousness confirming their decision without a thought this time.

Fifteen minutes later and an unconscious Claire was being rushed through on a gurney through the doubled door entrance of St. Sebastian's Hospital.

"What do we have here?" an approaching Doctor asked while taking note to check the vitals of his current patient.

"Single, white female suffering from a pre longed effect of stress and fatigue. She's pregnant as well" one of the EMT's went onto explain to the tall Doctor.

"Okay, take her down to room 15 of the emergency ward and……"

"Is she going to be okay?" the Doctor found himself being asked by a woman he had not seen until now, and that led him to ask her something as a natural form of procedure.

"Are you family?" he asked as he rushed along with the gurney towards the doorway with a big emergency sign labelled above it.

"Yes…..yes I am." the brunette replied with a surprising lack of hesitance in her tone. She admittedly felt bad about lying but she couldn't seem to find another way to calm her growing worry of this withering woman below her. The same woman who had helped her numerous times before.

"Well I can't really give you anything solid at the moment Miss but……"

"IS SHE GOING TO BE OKAY OR NOT!!" she more or less screamed now growing steadily frantic and frustrated with this man's negligence to just offer her a straight forward answer.

"We'll do what we can." he replied while nodding in firm agreement with his statement, and he knew that he would use every fibre within his being to see this woman well and walking again. Then he would worry about the baby he was affirmed she was carrying.

Her response to his words was a slight nod of agreement combined with a hint of doubt for thinking the worst but as she looked up at this man working over the blonde, she felt an odd and immediate sense of consolation wash over her. Consolation in knowing that he would fix this.

(Meanwhile)

"Cheers mate." he offered as he tiredly stepped out of the cab that brought him back to his home, or more Mansion judging by it's breathtaking appearance and size, but he truthfully enjoyed neither cause it brought him nothing but loneliness in return. His brother Liam was hardly here and even then to he just missed the times when it used to be him and his brother playing songs on the family piano back in their home in Manchester.

The good old times, he reminded himself with a smile that slowly faded as he stepped into the vast but dull interior of his reality. However his train of thought was abruptly interrupted by the incessant ringing of the phone he had miraculously managed to find within the dark expanse of his place.

"Hello." he automatically spoke into the phone and what he heard next was enough to stop him from saying anything else. Instead he just dropped the phone and sprinted towards the place he was told his brother Liam had just been admitted into. Thankfully it was only a few blocks away.

_St. Sebastian's Hospital._

**Come next chap and we'll not only find out the status of Claire's condition but we might start to see some proper Charlie and Claire interaction seeing as he might be there for a while thanks to Liam. The whole storyline of Claire and her Father will also be explored more within this fic. So what do you think guys, would you like to see this develop?**

_Please leave a review, thanks :)_


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